American adults are neglecting immunizations, CDC says

Millions of American adults are failing to get vaccinated against whooping cough, tetanus, shingles and other diseases, the CDC said Thursday.

New immunization rates released this week fall far short of national goals for recommended vaccines, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data.

Just 14 percent of adults 19 and older are vaccinated against tetanus, diphtheria and whooping cough. Only 20 percent age 60 and older received the shingles vaccination, and only about 35 percent of women ages 19 to 26 are immunized against HPV, or human papillomavirus.

The low vaccination rates are leading to outbreaks, CDC officials said. More than 48,000 cases of whooping cough, for example, were reported in 2012 — more than any other year since 1955. The illness, named after its excessive coughing that ends in a whooping noise, costs far more to treat than the vaccine costs, as in $2,000 compared with a few dollars per vaccine dose.

A national report blames misunderstanding and missinformation about vaccines, as well as irregular checkups. The report from Trust for America’s Health and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation also pointed to the lack of a nationwide system to make sure adults receive recommended vaccines.

“Some of the greatest public health successes of the past century – including the worldwide eradication of smallpox and the virtual elimination of polio, measles and rubella in the United States – are because of successful vaccination programs,” said Jeffrey Levi, executive director of the trust.